Gospel Outreach Community Church
How to Be Saved
Roman Road to Salvation: A group of verses in the Bible, taken from the Book of Romans. This selection is an understandable and presentable presentation of the salvation plan Jesus Christ has. They are a wonderful group of verses to memorize and mark in your own Bible to use when sharing the gospel and your faith with strangers, acquaintances, friends, or family. If you have not accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour of your life we ask you to read on and consider the meaning of the verses below, acting accordingly. If you would like to learn more then please contact us so we can talk with you!
1. I'm a 'good person'! God won't let a 'good person' go to Hell, right?
Romans 3:23 – for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
Romans 3:10 – As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one;”
Romans 5:12 – Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned-
God is the creator of everything: The molecules that make up everything that exists, the earth, the planets and galaxies, the universe, and beyond what we can see. He is HOLY! 1st John 1:5 says that: “-God is Light (He is holy, His message is truthful, He is perfect in righteousness), and in Him there is no darkness at all (no sin, no wickedness, no imperfection).” God has laws, rules, for His creation to follow and obey.
The 10 Commandments are an example of the laws He set down for us. He gave them to show that no one can be perfect. Have you ever told a ‘small lie’ even the kind you may have told a parent, as a child, to get out of trouble? If so, you are guilty of being a liar. James 2:10 says: “For whoever keeps the whole Law but stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of breaking all of it.” This means that you have disobeyed God and have sinned.
2. Sin can't be such a big deal. If it really is so bad, even if I have done a small lie, then is there any HOPE?
Romans 6:23 – For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
God is infinite and eternal. He cannot tolerate sin and must punish disobedience with consequences. He demonstrates His character in both his creation and in His laws. Inside our conscience, these laws are a part of us. God also gave His laws in His word: the Bible. A good judge will not allow a guilty person to go free and unpunished.
God is holy and righteous and cannot allow sinful people to go unpunished. God promised to send His son, Jesus Christ, the Redeemer, to provide a way for people to escape the eternal death we deserve. He LOVED us so much that He died in our place as the ultimate sacrifice so that we would have eternal life with Him when we die.
3. After all I've done, and how sinful I've been, how could He willingly die in my place?
Romans 5:8 – But God clearly shows and proves His own love for us, by the fact that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
John 3:16 and 17says: “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, so that whoever believes and trusts in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge and condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.”
Jesus was literally spat on, mocked, and cursed as he died on the cross. But despite this Jesus’s response is recorded in Luke 23:34: “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” He died an agonizing and horrible death in our place, knowing every sinful word, deed or act, and thoughts that we would do. His love is so powerful! He loved us, unconditionally, when we have done even the worst of deeds, to the point of death.
4. How can I be saved, if being a 'good person' or doing 'good works' is not enough?
Romans 10:9-10 – if you acknowledge and confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord (recognizing His power, authority, and majesty as God), and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart a person believes (in Christ as Savior) resulting in his justification (that is, being made righteous—being freed of the guilt of sin and made acceptable to God); and with the mouth he acknowledges and confesses (his faith openly), resulting in and confirming [his] salvation.
Doing ‘Good works’ or being a ‘good person’ will not save you from God’s judgment. Ephesians 2: 8-9 says: “For it is by grace (God’s remarkable compassion and favor drawing you to Christ) that you have been saved (delivered from judgment and given eternal life) through faith. And this (salvation) is not of yourselves (not through your own effort), but it is the (undeserved, gracious) gift of God; not as a result of (your) works (nor your attempts to keep the Law), so that no one will (be able to) boast or take credit in any way (for his salvation).”
Confessing our sins and putting our belief and faith in Jesus is the only way we can be saved. Jesus paid for them on the cross. This does not mean that we believe and go out doing as we please. Our life should be wholly surrendered to God’s lordship, putting Him in charge of everything we do because we belong to Him.
Both Jesus and John the Baptist began their teachings on the importance of ‘Repentance’. Matthew 4:17 says: “From that time Jesus began to preach and say, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’” The word ‘repent’ means to turn around or go in the opposite direction. Repentance is true sadness for everything that we have done wrong in our lives. 2nd Corinthians 7:10 says: “For godly sorrow produces a repentance without regret, leading to salvation; but the sorrow of the world produces death.”
The sadness the world has is similar to the regret of a criminal, who has been caught. A godly sadness is a remorse and conviction that makes the person change the direction of their wrong habits. The Holy Spirit convicts us of our sins. John 16:7-8 says: “‘But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper (Comforter, Advocate, Intercessor—Counselor, Strengthener, Standby) will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him (the Holy Spirit) to you [to be in close fellowship with you]. And He, when He comes, will convict the world about [the guilt of] sin [and the need for a Savior], and about righteousness, and about judgment:”
5. I have asked God to forgive my sins and I believe what Jesus did to save me: living without sin, dying on the cross to pay for my sin, rising from the grave three days after, and that he will come again. How do I know that God heard me and has accepted me?
Romans 10:13 – For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
John 1:12 says: “But to as many as did receive and welcome Him, He gave the right [the authority, the privilege] to become children of God, that is, to those who believe in (adhere to, trust in, and rely on) His name-.” This is one of God’s many promises to us. God hears and accepts ALL who believe and put their faith and trust in Him. Jesus destroyed the power of sin and death when He died on the cross, shedding His blood. Because He did this we do not need to fear death! Jesus paid, IN FULL, the price for our sins. God keeps His promises, including the promise to receive and accept anyone who comes to Him through their faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. You, as a believer, have a ‘new life’ in Christ.
Mark 16 tells that Jesus did not remain dead, rising three days after He died. 2nd Corinthians 5:17 says: Therefore if anyone is in Christ [that is, grafted in, joined to Him by faith in Him as Savior], he is a new creature [reborn and renewed by the Holy Spirit]; the old things [the previous moral and spiritual condition] have passed away. Behold, new things have come [because spiritual awakening brings a new life].
6. I want to obey God. What should I do now?
Romans 10:17 – So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
With your new life in Christ, as His child, take time every day to pray and read the Bible, God’s word. Find fellowship with other Bible-believing Christians in a Church that teaches the Bible. Tell and confess to other people, even those you do not know, that Jesus is your savior. Share your faith in Christ with everyone and anyone God places in your daily life.
Matthew 28:18-20 says: “Jesus came up and said to them, ‘All authority (all power of absolute rule) in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations [help the people to learn of Me, believe in Me, and obey My words], baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always [remaining with you perpetually—regardless of circumstance, and on every occasion], even to the end of the age.”